How to Find Employees for Small Business Success

When setting up your small business, you will soon get to the stage when you consider hiring your first employees. When you have chosen your business entity and formed your business, you can apply for your Employer Identification Number (or EIN). You can apply for this with the Inland Revenue Service (IRS) and then look at how to find employees.

So, where do you start looking? This article takes a look at how to find employees for small business success.

Why Hire Employees?

Hiring employees might be an essential step after you form your small business. You might need staff to serve customers or a receptionist to manage your appointments. You might be a dentist, for example, and wish to hire a dental assistant or dental hygienist and require their specialist skills for your practice to function at its best. Employees might be a crucial step in your expansion.

You might need any number of employees to get your business off the ground. There is a lot to consider when hiring your first employees. You need to decide on the job roles and create a job description. You can then work out the hours you are available to offer for the position i.e. part-time, full-time, etc.

Then you will need to decide on salary, benefits, etc. You might want to seek professional advice to ensure you adhere to employment law etc. Ensure you include all payments, like childcare and other benefits, etc. Employees must receive all the correct days off, etc.

There is a lot of paperwork when hiring your first employees. Unless you have experience or knowledge about recruitment and HR, you MUST thoroughly research employer expectations or consider outsourcing this task to a professional or agency. An HR agency can help you with how to find employees and the necessary steps to take when hiring your first employee.

Costs of Hiring Employees

It can be extremely costly to hire an employee and varies by how you find employees. You could save money by doing all the tasks and paperwork yourself, or you might wish to pay for an HR agency to assist your business in hiring employees. You might be able to save money by doing a lot of the recruitment process yourself, but you will need to be careful that it doesn’t cost you in the future because you have missed out on an important legal aspect of recruitment, for example.

Hiring a new employee can incur quite significant costs. For example, estimates vary for the cost of hiring an employee in the US, but it is reported to cost between $1500 and $7500. The average seems to be about $4000. If your new hire fails and decides to leave your company, you will have wasted significant funds, so you need to find the right fit for your business in the first place.

Come up with a recruitment policy that details all the steps required and then you can plan your interview questions to ensure you find the right candidates for your small business. Deciding on the skills and qualifications you want to see in your employee is a good place to start.

Employees vs Contractors vs Freelancers

When looking at how to find employees, decide what type of employee you are looking for. Do you want to hire employees, contractors, or freelancers? This will affect legal processes, taxes, wages, and the expectations of both employer and worker.

How to Find Employees

Here are some of the ways that you can find employees for your small business.

1. Local Papers

Your local paper is a good way to advertise your local job roles if you’re wondering how to find employees. It might be best for less skilled roles and jobs suited to the local market. You will not reach as many people as you would online, but it can still be a place to start. A local paper will charge a set price for a certain length of advertising time, and the cost can vary depending on the size of your advert.

2. Job Sites

These are an ideal way to advertise your job, some sites are free to advertise on but you have to register. Typically there will be a fee for your advertisement. Although you can reach a wide audience, you will also have to compete with many other job adverts. You can also end up with irrelevant candidates, so you will need to have efficient interview selection criteria so this does not take up too much of your time.

3. Friends & Family

Having a reliable new staff member that you know will make a great fit in your business can be helpful if you have a friend or family member who is the ideal fit for the role. You will need to ensure they have the right qualifications and experience but otherwise, this can be a great place to start. Alternatively, you might be able to get a good candidate recommendation from friends and family, especially if they work in the same industry.

4. Online Marketplaces

An online jobs marketplace, like Upwork or Fiverr, are ways to find online freelance workers. You can offer trial work and extend your contract if the work goes well. Online marketplaces for freelance workers offer some protection. This style of job site works best for worldwide remote workers and a wide talent pool. If you require an onsite worker, you may be able to connect with someone local, but this is less likely.

5. Recruitment Companies

Recruitment companies are experts in their field and will have access to a large pool of candidates to reach numerous applicants. Depending on the agency, you may or may not have a more tailored service. They are likely to have a series of procedures for filling positions and finding applicants. Recruitment companies can be more costly than other ways of advertising for your job role.

6. Professional Services

A professional recruitment service is similar to a recruitment company but will take a closer responsibility for finding the best candidate for the role. This can be an ideal option for larger companies that may have regular positions available but are not yet ready to set up an internal HR department. This is likely to be the most costly option but could get you the ideal candidate and save money in the long term if the candidate is a good fit.

7. Advertising at Premises

If you are looking for employees who love your brand or services, then you might want to consider advertising on your premises. This is a low-cost option that will attract local people. You will be less likely to get an excessive number of applicants as well. This option is more suited to a coffee shop or perhaps a bookstore for example. It is going to be less successful for employees of a professional nature or with specialist skills.

8. Social Media Sites

You can find job applicants on social media sites although you will need to be careful about making judgments on candidates by looking at their profiles. It is important to assess everyone equally.

You can learn how to find employees on LinkedIn by following their articles and suggestions. As their platform is designed to be a business networking platform it is a great place to advertise. The cost of advertising your role on LinkedIn can vary depending on the plan you decide to use. There are free options.

FAQs

What are the costs of hiring employees as an LLC?

It can cost between $1500 and $7000 to hire a new employee. Costs can vary greatly depending on how you advertise.

How to avoid hiring bad employees?

You can avoid a bad hire by having a good recruitment policy and checklist for the skills and experience you require. You can also offer trial periods for work and also seek advice from other managers or staff. Get two good recent references before offering a candidate a job.

What qualities do you look for when hiring new employees?

Produce a checklist of skills and qualifications you require from your candidate and any particular soft skills necessary for the job. Such as requesting attention to fine detail if this is important for the job role.

Final Word: How to Find Employees for Small Business Success

When considering how to find employees for your new business, you have several available. Where you got to find employees will depend on your industry and the types of employment you have to offer. You could choose a couple recruitment options and see how you get on.

Ensure you have set up your EIN number so you can legally take on employees, then follow all the rules and regulations for hiring staff. Recruitment can be costly, so have clear expectations and keep an eye on rising costs! You can find out more about forming a business here.